


Spin

by PajamaSecrets



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Dancing, First Kiss, Kissing, M/M, Spin the Bottle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-26
Updated: 2016-10-26
Packaged: 2018-08-27 03:11:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8384995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PajamaSecrets/pseuds/PajamaSecrets
Summary: Merlin was feeling particularly lonely and useless tonight—a new year, a new school—why did mum have to take that job in the city?—So he found himself sitting on a patio chair at Gwaine's giant house, watching the cool kids dance and make out and drink and smoke.
He sighed, swirled around his plastic cup of pepsi, and almost didn't notice the handsome blond boy plop into the chair next to him.





	

Generally, Merlin didn't like parties. They were filled with thumping, raucous music, the thick veil of cigarette smoke, the clanking of liquor bottles, and the chatter of mindless, naive teens. Merlin didn't like to lump himself in with them; however, a part of him, a part often shoved in the recesses of his cranium, longed to be included in the camaraderie of his peers. He figured it was the downfall of being a mature and intelligent teenager: you want the friendship of those your age, but not all the bullshit that comes with it ("Dude. Check out Kate today. Fucking hot," "I just really want some weed right now, man," "That's so gay," "I did so many shots last weekend").

 

Merlin was feeling particularly lonely and useless tonight—a new year, a new school— _why did mum have to take that job in the city?_ —So he found himself sitting on a patio chair at Gwaine's giant house, watching the cool kids dance and make out and drink and smoke. He sighed, swirled around his plastic cup of pepsi, and almost didn't notice the handsome blond boy plop into the chair next to him. Upon closer inspection, Merlin recognized him as Arthur Pendragon, the star of the track team. "Hey, mate," Arthur said, combing his fingers through his sweaty hair. "You having fun?"

 

"I guess," Merlin shrugged, taking a sip of his soda.

 

"I'm having a hell of a time," Arthur laughed. "My sister's hooking up with her best friend. They're drunk out of their minds. Fucking hilarious."

 

"Yeah."

 

Arthur playfully shoved Merlin's shoulder. "Okay, loner kid," he grinned, "I know you're allergic to socializing or something, but at least come and dance. It'll be fun."

 

"I don't think-"

 

"Come on."

 

Arthur grabbed Merlin by the wrist and dragged him to the center of Gwaine's backyard, where there was a pretty impressive mob of teens dancing. Arthur started to jump to the beat, and after an awkward moment or two of hesitation, Merlin did his best to join in.

 

"That's it, mate," Arthur yelled over the booming speakers, giving Merlin a friendly punch to the side. Merlin giggled and shoved back.

 

Maybe parties weren't so bad after all.

 

***

 

The ring of the lunch bell was deafening yet very welcome; it signaled the respite from the scathing boredom of classes. Merlin packed up his bag, slung it over his shoulder, and headed toward the cafeteria. It was always a crowded mess in the cafeteria; it took Merlin ten minutes to get through the line. He slapped some bills on the counter and the grumpy lunch lady doled out the change.

 

As a rule, Merlin did not sit in the main lunch area, he took refuge in a nice corner deep in the recesses of West City School's campus that not many people knew about. It had a wooden bench shaded by a thick cover of trees which sparrows and squirrels made into their homes. It reminded him of the quaint little town he grew up in, of taking walks with his mother through the village green.

 

However, it seemed this lunch's peace was short-lived as a familiar face bounded towards Merlin.

 

"Hey, mate! I remember you from that party. Marlin, was it?"

 

"Merlin," Merlin responded quietly, busying himself with his salad.

 

"Merlin," the boy affirmed. "I don't think I introduced myself properly. I'm Arthur."

 

"I already know of you, mister track star," Merlin smirked, taking a bite of his salad.

 

"Really? I though people were more into football."

 

"Our football team is shite," Merlin grumbled.

 

Arthur laughed. "True. Listen, do you mind if I sit?" Arthur asked, producing a brown paper lunch bag from his backpack.

 

"Not at all," Merlin replied, patting the space next to him.

 

Arthur sat down and fished a sandwich out of his paper bag, unwrapping it with some difficulty ("fucking cling film," Arthur mumbled under his breath). "Lance and Gwaine went to make up the math quiz," Arthur said, "And I have positively no idea where Leon went."

 

Merlin figured this was his excuse for being alone. If you had friends, you weren't alone at lunch. Unless you were a loser (see figure A: Merlin Emryson).

 

"Well, I don't think Lance and Gwaine have much to worry about. They're in calculus, right? The quiz wasn't too difficult."

 

"Are you kidding me? It was bloody impossible. I didn't even remember how in the hell to do the logarithms," Arthur complained.

 

"They're easy if you study,"" Merlin noted.

 

“ _If_ being the key word there," Arthur snorted.

 

They laughed, and the conversation easily floated along into a discussion of the different math teachers, then to the differences between teachers of different subjects. Merlin felt a warm spark grow inside him, and it took a moment to recognize what it was: the feeling of acceptance. Welcoming.

 

***

 

Arthur now invited Merlin to eat lunch with him and his buddies every day. The other track team members were relatively nice; Lance was a bit quiet, Gwaine was the opposite of quiet, and Leon was always talking about Doctor Who. Merlin still did not speak much, but he was very happy to have the company. The guys were raving about how great the first track meet of the season went (and how apparently celebration was in order).

 

"Are you going to the party, Leon?" Gwaine asked. "We need someone to bring the booze and it's your turn."

 

"Yeah, I'm going," Leon replied. "Although I can probably only snag a few beers at most. My parents would get suspicious."

 

Merlin suddenly became _very_ interested in his fruit cup, which Gwaine noticed and came to a belated realization. "Hey Merlin, you wanna come to the party too? You're invited, mate," he proclaimed in his too-loud voice.

 

"I'm not too fond of parties," Merlin said with poorly attempted nonchalance.

 

"It's not really a party, Merlin," Leon explained. "Just us track guys, and Arthur's sister, and Lance's girlfriend Gwen, and our friend Freya."

 

"Alright," Merlin nodded, "I guess I'll go. When is it?"

 

"Friday at seven," Lancelot noted. "My house."

 

"Lance's dad works Friday nights, and his mum doesn't give a shit if we drink or smoke, so we're golden," Gwaine grinned. "Although I'm fresh out of weed, so I suppose just drinking this time."

 

"Gwaine, you're the only person here that actually smokes weed," Arthur remarked with an eyeroll.

 

Merlin smiled. Hanging out with these guys might actually be a lot of fun.

 

***

 

Friday night came, and after looking up Lance's address in the school directory, he got in his car (after saying goodbye to his mum, who was overjoyed at the prospect of her son having friends) and headed out.

 

Merlin arrived at Lance's after a good twenty minutes of getting lost in his neighborhood looking for the right street. He smoothed down his faded red hoodie, brushed his fingers through his hair (why was he suddenly worrying about his appearance?), and knocked on Lance's door.

 

"You've got another one, honey!" Merlin could hear what he assumed was Lance's mother yelling at him.

 

"Okay, mum, give me a minute!" Lance yelled back.

 

The door opened to a grinning Lancelot. He was definitely more loosened up compared to how he was at school, although Merlin could probably guess why that was judging from the smell of alcohol. "Come on in, Merlin, We're up in my room."

 

Merlin followed Lance through his house to his room, shutting the door behind them. Gwaine, Arthur, and what Merlin assumed were Freya, Gwen, and Arthur's sister were all sitting in a circle on the floor, passing a few bottles of beer around.

 

"Merlin! You came!" Gwaine exclaimed. Arthur grinned and motioned for Merlin to sit next to him.

 

"This is Freya," Arthur motioned toward a fair-skinned brunette, "Gwen," Arthur pointed out the girl clinging onto Lance's side, "and my sister Morgana."

 

"Nice to meet you all," Merlin said shyly.

 

"You came just in time for spin-the-bottle," Gwaine announced. "It's a tradition."

 

"Tradition?" Merlin was curious.

 

"Basically,” Leon explained, “after the first big track meet of the season, we either play drinking games or spin-the-bottle. Considering we don't have enough booze for drinking games…”

 

"We are not playing your Doctor Who drinking game again," Morgana sighed.

 

"'Take a drink every time the ninth Doctor says 'fantastic.' You get smashed pretty quickly," Gwen giggled.

 

"I thought it was fun!" Freya protested.

 

"That's just because you're a geek like Leon," Arthur prodded.

 

"Hey, Nerdy and Proud," Leon stated.

 

"You stole that from X-Men," Freya groaned.

 

"Did not!"

 

Morgana finished her beer with one last swig and put it in the middle of the floor. "Okay, guys, you ready for-"

 

"Hey, hey, Merlin doesn't know the rules," Gwaine interrupted.

 

"Alright, I'll explain," Arthur volunteered. "It's pretty easy, Merlin, just spin it and kiss whoever it lands on. You have to snog if you get the same person again on your next turn. And yes, same-sex goes. We're all very open people and we're properly buzzed at the moment so it's not really an issue."

 

"Plus it's fun," Morgana grinned.

 

"That too," Arthur nodded.

 

"Are you gonna play with us?" Gwaine whined at Gwen and Lance.

 

"We're just gonna kiss each other for tonight," Gwen cooed, running her fingers through Lance's hair. Lance chuckled and kissed her on the cheek.

 

"Suit yourselves, lovebirds," Arhtur teased. "That leaves only one girl I can kiss without it being incestuous. Looks like it's going to be a gay night for me." Arthur grinned at Merlin (did he just _wink_?).

 

“Now Arthur, you’re turning into a slut," Gwaine teased.

 

“I’ll take that as a compliment since it’s coming from the biggest slut in the room,” Arthur poked back. The room erupted into hysterics.

 

"Okay, boys, let's get this show on the road," Morgana shut them up and spun the bottle. Merlin watched it turn and turn and turn and land on… Freya. She leaned over and kissed her for one, two seconds on the lips then pulled away. Next was Freya's turn—she ended up kissing Leon. Then Gwaine went (amongst groans and protests of his bad breath and against-the-rules tactics) and gave quite the kiss to Morgana ("brush your teeth once in a while, you weirdo"). Leon went next and sighed when it landed on Gwaine. Next was Arthur. He grabbed the bottle and spun it with a flick of his wrist. It spun once, twice, three times, on and on… Why was Merlin getting nervous all of the sudden? It wasn't like he had a crush on Arthur or anything. He hadn't had a crush in years. And why was Merlin taking the time to contemplate this _now_ , when he could very well have his first kiss with never-brushes-his-teeth Gwaine?

 

The bottle stopped. On Freya. Arthur leaned in and gave her a nice little kiss and then passed the bottle to Merlin, whose heart was beating so fast it felt like it was going to crawl up into his throat and leap out. He placed the bottle down and gave it a whirl.

 

Spin.

 

Spin.

 

Spin.

 

Shit.

 

Of course it landed on Arthur. Merlin was pretty sure his face was bright red by now. He hesitated, awkwardly shuffling towards Arthur, stopping before he got close.

 

"Don't get shy on us, Merlin," Arthur chuckled, and took Merlin's chin with his fingertips and brought him forward for a quick touch of lips. Merlin could feel the tingle on his mouth long after Arthur pulled away.

 

The game went on, but Merlin really didn't pay much attention. His head was swirling with thoughts and emotions and urges that he'd never felt before.

 

And he had to admit, that was one sexy make-out Freya and Morgana were getting themselves into.

 

***

 

Spin-the-Bottle ended, jokes and stories were passed around, and eventually the party began to wind down. Freya, Lance, and Gwen decided to go out for ice cream ("the store's still open, why the fuck not?") and Gwaine, Leon and Morgana moved to the living room to watch reruns of The Office. Arthur and Merlin found themselves alone in Lancelot's room, not speaking. Merlin picked at a hangnail. Arthur kept nervously looking toward Merlin.

 

Arthur broke the silence. "You alright, Merlin? You've been pretty quiet."

 

"Ah, yeah, m' fine," Merlin mumbled.

 

"Did we make you uncomfortable at all? I mean, you didn't kiss Gwaine, so that was a plus. He needs to invest in some mints."

 

Merlin chuckled. "No, it was fine. It was fun. Good. Really."

 

"Are you uncomfortable with the same-sex kissing? It’s just a bit of fun, is all. You can sit out next time.”

 

_Next time?!_

 

"No, um, no. Not at all. I, uh, I'm gay actually. I don't mind at all," Merlin laughed nervously.

 

Fucking hell. He’d been friends with Arthur for hardly a week and a half, and now he told him something he had only ever told his mum. _Great._

 

"Then what's wrong? You should've been having a blast," Arthur nudged Merlin's shoulder with his.

 

"That-was-my-first-kiss," Merlin rushed out quickly. Arthur’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

 

"Oh, mate, I'm sorry. That's a pretty shoddy way of getting your first kiss."

 

Merlin shook his head. “It was nice. You were nice. It was—”

 

"But you should have a proper one. You know, you and someone else, alone… with feeling. And no tongue. You never want to have tongue with your first kiss. It's an acquired taste. I'm rambling now, aren't I?"

 

"A bit," Merlin smiled.

 

"D'you…" Arthur started. "D'you want a proper one?"

 

"Um, depends."

 

"Depends on what?"

 

"Who with?"

 

"Well, you've got several options: Gwaine, Leon, and my sister are in the other room. Uh, I'm not sure when the others are getting back, but Lance and Gwen are really too into each other these days to kiss anyone else, uh, Freya's nice…"

 

"Don't want to kiss a girl, really," Merlin said.

 

"Ah. Right. Well, um, as I said, Gwaine, Leon… There's me, too, I suppose."

 

Arthur was turning properly red. Was he _embarrassed_? If Merlin weren't blushing so hard himself, he would be laughing. But at the moment his face was heated, his palms were sweaty, and he was probably well on his way to full-on cardiac arrest.

 

"Alright," Merlin choked out.

 

"Huh?"

 

"You can… give me a proper kiss," Merlin said shakily.

 

Arthur scooted forward a bit. Merlin turned to face him. They looked at each other for a while, until it was at the point of staring, and they both laughed. Arthur put his hand against Merlin's cheek and got close, close enough that Merlin could feel Arthur's breath.

 

"You… you ready?" Arthur asked.

 

Merlin simply nodded, his pulse quickening.

 

Arthur's lips touched Merlin's, just a light brush at first. Merlin kissed back. They passed back and forth a gentle tug of lips, and just as Merlin was getting the hang of it, Arthur titled his head for a better angle. A lightning spark of pleasure hit Merlin's belly, a feeling he had never felt before.

 

It was slow, gentle, careful; exactly what a first kiss should be.

 

Arthur pulled away hesitantly, and they simply breathed together for a moment.

 

"Did I do okay?" Merlin asked.

 

"I was going to ask that," Arthur remarked with a nervous laugh.

 

A silence came upon them, but this time it was a comfortable silence; a safe silence. Neither one of them felt pushed to say anything. They simply dwelled in the afterglow of a wonderful kiss.

 

"Want to go watch telly with the others?" Arthur asked eventually.

 

"Sure," Merlin smiled.

 

Merlin and Arthur walked to the living room side by side, and when their arms accidentally brushed, Merlin could feel the electricity again.

 

This was going to be a _great_ year.

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this about 5 years ago and forgot about its existence until recently, when I went through my docs. I spruced it up a bit and here you go! It's definitely not been brit-picked. At this point, it's just an absurd mash-up of American and British high school culture. Except in Britain you don't call it high school (college, secondary school, upper school, a-levels, uhhhhh there's more I think? Please excuse my ignorance lmao).
> 
> Let me know what you think!


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